TIGA, the trade association representing the UK games industry, today announced Newport Business School and the School of Art Media & Design at the University of Wales, Newport as its newest members.
The University of Wales, Newport offers three courses for students looking to work in the videogames industry: Games Development and A.I. BSc (Hons); Computer Games Design BA (Hons) and the Skillset Accredited Animation BA (Hons). The Schools also boast the Synergy (http://synergy.newport.ac.uk) and Future Technology research groups, which focus on gaming culture and new interactive technologies.
Dr. Mike Reddy, Programme Leader, Games Development and A.I. explains: “Our degree courses are designed to equip graduates with the technical and transferable skills required for working in the video games industry. We achieve this through collaborative inter-disciplinary teaching, with creative input from industry heavyweights such as Rare, Blitz and Rocksteady Studios to ensure our courses are fit for purpose. We have seen our graduates go on to world class companies such as EA London, SEGA and Blitz Game Studios.””
On joining TIGA Mike adds: “I believe universities and industry must have a legitimate and equal partnership in developing the skills needed in the work place. As anyone working in video games development knows, often real learning is achieved through the practice of actually making a game; however this learning is very seldom formalized and used as a tool to educate others. To improve the pedagogy of games we must strengthen the links between academia and industry and create meaningful dialogue.””
Finally Dr. Reddy stated: “Another crucial reason for joining TIGA is that we would like to raise the profile of Wales as a fantastic location for any studio looking to start up or relocate. Wales has so far been largely overlooked as a location for games developers despite rich resources in terms of talented graduates and the backing of the Welsh Assembly Government for developing Creative Industry. This is something we would like to help change.””
Richard Wilson, TIGA CEO stated: “In July TIGA launched the Play Together initiative Education Exchange which is a forum on tiga.org for educators and industry to connect and collaborate. I am delighted the Newport Business School and the School of Art Media & Design have since joined TIGA. By engaging with educators we can ensure our industry is equipped with the skills required to remain truly world beating in the long term.””
For more information or to contact The University of Wales, Newport, click here.
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Notes to editors:
About TIGA:
TIGA is the trade association representing the UK’s games industry. The majority of our members are either independent games developers or in-house publisher owned developers. We also have outsourcing companies, technology businesses and universities amongst our membership.
TIGA’s vision is to make the UK the best place in the world to do games business. We focus on three sets of activities: political representation, generating media coverage and developing services that enhance the competitiveness of our members. This means that TIGA members are effectively represented in the corridors of power, their voice is heard in the media and they receive benefits that make a material difference to their businesses, including a reduction in costs and improved commercial opportunities.
For further information, please contact Eva Field, TIGA PR Manager on: 07814 039 983, or email eva@tiga.org.